Contractibility of fixed point sets of auter space (Q1602956)

By a construction of \textit{A. Hatcher} and \textit{K. Vogtmann} [J. Lond. Math. Soc., II. Ser. 58, No. 3, 633-655 (1998; Zbl 0922.57001)], the automorphism group \(\Aut(F_n)\) of a free group \(F_n\) of rank \(n\) acts with finite stabilizers on a contractible space \(X_n\) (a spine of ``auter space''), obtained as the geometric realization of a suitable poset of equivalence classes of marked graphs with fundamental group \(F_n\). The main result of the present paper states that, for any finite subgroup \(G\) of \(\Aut(F_n)\), the fixed point subcomplex \(X_n^G\) of \(G\) is contractible. The proof generalizes methods of an analogous result by \textit{S. Krstic} and \textit{K. Vogtmann} [Comment. Math. Helv. 68, No. 2, 216-262 (1993; Zbl 0805.20030)] for the action of the outer automorphism group \(\text{Out}(F_n)\) on ``outer space'' (obtained also by \textit{T. White} [Proc. Am. Math. Soc. 118, No. 3, 681-688 (1993; Zbl 0798.20021)]). The result is motivated by the fact that it allows one to compute the cohomology of normalizers or centralizers of finite subgroups of \(\Aut(F_n)\) based on their actions on fixed point subcomplexes (for example in a paper by the author [in J. Pure Appl. Algebra 158, No. 1, 41-81 (2001; Zbl 0977.20042)]).